Indian fashion for the masses

Shilpa Kannan
India Business Reporter, Delhi

Models present a creation by Indian designer Ashima-Leena

The lights and the smoke machines are turned on as a model walks down the ramp wearing a pair of glowing neon headphones and a bright futuristic dress.

The crowd enthusiastically cheers a young designer who comes forward to take a bow.

High Fashion has never been in so much demand in India. A growing section of the population is young, rich and not shy of flaunting their wealth and beauty.

It makes sense for them to indulge in the season's new, expensive designer clothes.

The demand for the latest clothes and accessories is not solely coming from the populations of India's big cities but also from those in the smaller towns and cities across the country.

For these people, though, access is limited - most designers are based in the biggest cities.

Fashion to the masses

This is the primary reason that retail chains such as Wills Lifestyle are in commercial agreements with mainstream designers. Their hope is to offer ready-to-wear lines at more affordable rates.

Indian designers that have contracts with retail chains include Rohit Bal, J J Valaya, Ranna Gill, Rina Dhaka, and Rajesh Pratap Singh.

They are designing off the rack or ready to wear clothes that have designer labels. The prices range between $20 (£13) and $200.

We as a country love brands and love discounts Ishita Swarup, co-founder of 99labels.com

These clothes are well below the price of haute couture, where designers make one-off pieces that are customised to individual preferences.

Wills Lifestyle is owned by the ITC group. Its stores are located in luxury hotels in the major cities, but are also in High Streets in 30 smaller towns and cities in India and plans to open stores in another 10 soon.

Atul Chand is the chief executive of ITC's lifestyle retail business division. He says his marketing strategy is targeting young people with growing incomes.

Online (fashion) retailing

The trend away from bricks and mortar towards much lower-cost online sales is also occurring in India. One popular retail fashion website is 99labels.com.

It offers customers discounts on clothes and accessories from many Indian and international brands. The country's internet usage is still very low in comparison to Western Europe. But it is a growing market, especially for young people, according to Ishita Swarup, the co-founder of the website.

The ethos of discounts-plus-fashion works universally, she says: "We as a country love brands and love discounts…When we combine the two, we have a win-win situation."

The designers themselves are hungry for the increased sales potential that arises from being aligned with retail chains and the internet.

Back on the catwalk

Rajesh Pratap Singh is the designer for Delhi fashion week's grand finale.

Hundreds of muslin coats with bold red tailor markings hang from the ceiling, creating the mood for his theme "Bespoke Tales", which was inspired by the evolution of tailoring.

After the runway finale his clothes will find their way into Wills Lifestyle stores across the country.

Indian fashion designer Suneet Varma

Wandering around the suspended jackets is Sunil Sethi, the president of the Fashion Design Council of India. He says that the success of the show indicates both the talent of the local designers and the vibrant local scene.

Indian designers first made their names within the local market and then branched out, into international fashion weeks. Now they have come full circle, he says.

The difference this time is that they are designing with an international perspective for the local markets, according to Mr Sethi.

Increasingly India's economic growth depends upon domestic consumption. It is logical that its fashion industry is seeking growing support locally.

It won't be long before fashion weeks spread out in smaller towns and cities. And with nearly a quarter billion middle-class households who have rising incomes, it's a market that fashion can't afford to ignore.